To think my son should not be forced to do a full GCSE in religious education

[ReallyTired]

He would far rather do GCSE music. He had done RE since he was five. Surely an extra two years is not going to increase his knowledge of other religions that much.

"Why send him to a school whose policies you don't agree with?"

Not everyone gets their first preference school. Indeed some people do not get a school from their preferred list at all.

Not all schools require pupils to sit a GCSE in RE, so this is very much an issue if the management within your specific school. If they are set in their ways, then you could consider the option of removing your DS from RE.

But before you do so, have you actually looked at the exam syllabus? Because it's really not about the increase of knowledge about the world's religions in terms of their tenets and practices. It's about philosophies and ethics of communities.

"This means that while computer programming as a whole is a very good very well paid career. The more specific career of games programmer is not."

Most geeks realise this eventually and do something dull like database programming. A 14 year old is more likely to be inspired to write their own games than their own SQL query! Writing games require a good knowledge or algorithms and that knowledge is transferable.

The computer programming GCSE is a good course. I hope he enjoys it.

The new A-level RE (Well Ethics and Philosophy of Religion):

Questions

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The usual silly comments about "choice" - for many people there is none. And no parent expects their non-faith, community comprehensive to be a hotbed of religion.

OP: obviously YANBU, so the question is whether there is any way round this. How many GCSEs can your son do? Do all students have to do RE, are exceptions ever made? You need a strategy, and maybe the support of some likeminded parents.

FWIW if I had only three GCSE options, and was fairly certain I wanted to go into computing, music AND drama wouldn't be two of them.

It it statutorily compulsory in state schools to take RE until GCSE level- it is not statutorily compulsory to take the exam. One of mine went to a school where the staturory requirement was fulfilled for those not wanting to take the exam by watching a vaguely relevant film and talking about it. Other schools insist on the full exam, and make it impossible by time tabling to avoid it. And there are various stages in between. But the outrageousness of compulsory RE remains. It's very frustrating when there is so little time in the curriculum and so many other subjects to choose from.

Mistigri Methinks you miss the point, by the time those doing GCSE this year get to ripe old age of 30, the computers will write their own code but the computers will still need guidance on music and drama! Education should be is about epistemiology and ontology. It is no longer about facts and coding will also soon be on the way out.

Interesting viewpoint. What makes you think coding is on the way out? Any articles to link to?

It's certainly not a view I've ever heard.

WildStallions At school (in 1965) I was taught by someone (FEMALE!) who had coded just after WW2 at Fort Halstead in binary. I managed in FORTRAN then BASIC then C+. My youngest brother was very well paid to sort out problems in (very big) systems working in COBOL. DD has friends who had well paid jobs making interactive websites in HTML. Essentially a facebook wall. Just had a look, I can get off the web site up for $50 at click of a mouse. Programming a robot was complicated, pages of code, still is but it writes itself just by taking the robot through the task. I think the next major step will be when the robot can compare what it has made with the original. I do think some sort of coding should still be taught but at primary school and more in the way that I was taught French in my 11+ year. An opinion rather than a viewpoint.

Is it a chirch school? If so you knew the deal

Kids love rs. It's so different to your experience at school.

RE is an excellent GCSE - interesting and engaging, particularly if well taught. But that's not the point. It should not be compulsory. Incidentally, it is odd that it is compulsory, but does not count towards the EBacc.

I think parents forget the importance of staffing. You can just change subjects at a whim if you have a Team of staff there to teach them

"Is it a chirch school? If so you knew the deal"

It's compulsory in all schools.

Dd goes to a non church school and RE is compulsary up to and inc Yr 11. The more academic kids take a gcse, others don't. But it's the same amount of lessons whether you do the gcse or not. I guess you can remove your ds from re if you want.

However he may not be able to do music instead due to timetabling. Dd couldn't do art or triple science due to timetable clashes. Caused lots of tears.

Dd enjoys re, seems to be a lot of ethics and philosophy rather than actual religion. So debates on abortion, etc. I think it's good to get them thinking critically, arguing their viewpoint and listening to others.

Not the exam Bert

"Is it a chirch school? If so you knew the deal"

OP has said it's a community comprehensive.

And although it's compulsory to provide RE, parents can opt their DC out. I think it's pretty crap to make it compulsory exam though. But some schools do this for a number of subjects (compulsory core, which varies between schools) and, looking at the actual topics covered (it's more like global perspectives on ethics than detail of worship) and the need for understanding in a diverse world, it's not such a bad thing.

And, importantly, if you don't want your DC doing it, you have the legal right to remove them (unlike say a compulsory MFL).

IMO if he wants to do an academic subject at uni, he needs more rather than less academic GCSEs. One of drama, music and IT is obviously fine, more and I reckon it starts to look dodgy. Definitely not all his options should be non-academic. RS is at least a solid subject in the eyes of unis.

Does your son want to do it? If its a bit of everything rather than just what mine was (the new testament) he might well find it interesting.

Does imputing count towards e bac? Probably why school is not offering it.

This is one of the most used gcse rs exam boards IME. www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/religious-studies/gcse/religious-studies-b-4055/past-papers-and-mark-schemes
Kids bloody love. Our place does units 2 and 3. High pass rate.

Have you looked at the RE syllabus? I tend to agree that the way RE is taught earlier in school is pointless but the full GCSE is very worthwhile - there's something wrong with a person as a human being if they can't find it of interest. The world would be a better place if all adults had to do it imo.

What other options is he doing?

RS is a good essay writing option and I was told that for dd it would be good for her to have another essay writing subject apart from english. Dunno, how true that is. I got told a load of crap about Ebacc from the staff as well.

My eldest applying for university atm. I wonder how much your average university gives a toss on subjects over grades

Where dies this compulsory idea come from?
It's not compulsory at my DCs school. You can drop RE completely in year 9 (and most do)